MEXICO CITY. Extreme weather threatens the round of 16 between Mexico and England.
The teams’ arrival at the Azteca was delayed by thunder – at the same time everyone around the arena was urged to seek shelter.
Just over three hours before the scheduled kick-off in the World Cup round of 16 – at 15.00 local time – the skies opened up over Mexico City.
The heavy downpour was expected, but the thunder has caused major problems.
The power went out in several places inside the Azteca stadium, which is not entirely unusual in such weather conditions. At the same time, the teams were advised not to get to the arena while the strongest thunderstorms passed by.
Issued warning
Due to the severe weather conditions, people at the arena were advised to seek shelter.
At the moment, the plan is still for the match to be played according to the regular schedule, even though the forecast shows that the thunder is not expected to subside until around 19:00 local time (03:00 Swedish time).
Around 90 minutes before kick-off, the buses were given the green light to arrive.
On Friday, Fifa proposed to postpone the match, citing the weather and public safety. However, both Mexico and England opposed the change.
